Gibson / Les Paul Special / 1960 / Cherry Red / Guitar

No holds barred rock n roll machine for those looking for a double the P90 fun, this 1960 Gibson Les Paul Special will not disappoint.

Designed as an interim step between the Junior and Standard models, the Special is a little more sophisctaited than its brother featuring a bound neck and the additional pickup and controls. The advance of Fender during the later part of the 1950s and the popularity of the Stratocaster must have influenced the design with Gibson turning away from the more traditional shape 1958 in favour of the double cut and later SG shape. 

As some of you may be fully aware, the first few Specials produced between 1958 and the middle of 1959 with this new body shape did suffer with weak neck joints due to the proximity of the neck pickup to the base of the neck. This was rectified and the results can be seen here with our 1960 example.

The guitar itself is stunning. The top has faded little, which is often the case with the cherry finish but what remains is a stunning shaded that really emphasises the wonderful grain of the wood. There are only a few very minor dinks on the back and aside from the patch of repaired damage to the lower horn, the front only shows a few very slight bumps.

The neck too is superb. Here the colour has faded a little more but the more golden colour again really accentuates the grain of the mahogany. The headstock to shows only slight signs of damage but keeps the sharp edges of that most iconic of shapes. 

No neck or headstock breaks either! This is nice to find…

The hardware here is all correct and in good working order. The tailpiece is free of any major wear, the knobs and plastics are in good shape for their age with only minor warping to the pickguard.

The electronics are all correct and there is no sign that the solder has been disturbed.

There are some who feel that this addition of the extra pickup diminishes the response of the special when compared to the junior. This writer disagrees, especially in the case of this guitar. Theres a well rounded feel to the un-plugged sound with plenty of bite. This married to a pair of P90 pickups gives a vast array of sweet tones which go further than the blunt instrument associated with these guitars. The slimmer profile of the 1960 neck makes this a much more manageable prospect if the chunkier feel of earlier neck carves isn’t your thing

We find these guitars and they just move on so fast as players cotton on to the enjoyment of playing and owning these instruments. The more straightforward arrangement of elements with a more mature accoutrements makes the Special well, special! This example would certainly make a fine addition to any collection…

Instrument sold

ATB Guitars, UK  

Contact name:
Mike Long
Brands:
Languages:
English
Specialties:
Vintage Gibson, Fender and Martin from 1940's-1970's
Opening hours:
24 hours

Hello we’re ATB Guitars.


We are one of Europes leading sellers of vintage and rare guitars. We only sell vintage Gibson and Fender electric guitars from 1950 until 1975 and have an extensive inventory to browse in our bricks and mortar store in Cheltenham, UK or in our online web store.

Payment and p/x:

All prices are in UK GBP £ Sterling. Payment can be made by Paypal, bank transfer, cash, or money order cashiers cheque etc. 


Should you not be absolutely delighted with your purchase you may return it to Cheltenham, at your own expense, within 7 days from the date of delivery for a full refund. The item must not have been altered or tampered with in any way, and it must arrive in the same condition as it left us.

Postage and shipping:

We ship within the UK by Royal Mail Recorded (small items under 2Kg), TNT or UPS and Worldwide by Royal Mail Airmail Signed For (small under 2Kg) Parcelforce, UPS or FedEx. All shipping prices include expert packing, cartons and packing materials but not insurance which is typically around 2% of items value. Currently approx shipping rates for a single guitar are as follows:

UK excluding Northern Ireland and Highlands £29
Most of mainland Europe £49
U.S.A. £129
Asia £149 - £190
Rest of World including S. America £149 - £275

 

 
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